Rookie of the Year
The Nominees:
Dyme-A-Duzin
This was an admittedly thin year for hip-hop ROY. Dyme-A-Duzin dropped a solid mixtape A Portrait Of Donnovan that featured standouts like "New Brooklyn" and the Joey Bada$$ collabo "Swank Sinatra".
Ty Dolla $ign
The 28-year old L.A. native exploded onto the scene this year with the Mustard-on-the-beat, B.O.B. collaboration "Paranoid". Ty's debut album will be one to check for in 2014.
A$AP Ferg
I was somewhat obligated to put one of those A$AP guys on here, given the lack of alternatives. Ferg emerged as the second most famous of the clan, heating up the streets in 2013 with the singles "Work" and "Shabba".
World's Fair
World's Fair is a group out of Queens who caught my attention with the track "'96 Knicks", an ode to the bench-clearing, shit-talking antics that signified mid-90's basketball. Their debut (?) mixtape Bastards of the Party was worth a download, I guess.
And the winner is...Ty Dolla $ign
Dolla Sign tops a thin rookie class this year thanks to a few big singles. Is this guy even good at rapping? Are any of them?
Guest Verse of the Year (The Bun B Award)
The Nominees:
Method Man on A$AP Mobb's "Trillmatic"
Best Line: "I got a poor man's panache/I be stretchin' the cash"
Nas on Big Sean's "First Chain"
Best Line: "They guided my bones, and now I'm coppin' stones/Sorry, Sierra Leone, one day we'll right the wrongs"
Jay-Z on Drake's "Cake"
Best Line: "I done made more millionaires than the lotto did"
Action Bronson on "NaNa"
Best Line: "I got a team of hoes like Pat Summitt"
And the winner is...Method Man on A$AP Mobb's "Trillmatic"
It's long been my stance that good hip-hop is simply the bi-product of good ideas. Making a 90's-influenced single and then getting a Method Man guest verse is always a good idea.
Duet of the Year
The Nominees:
"Jackson & Travolta" by Action Bronson and Mayhem Lauren
Two old fashioned New York heavyweights go hard over a suitably knocking baseline and boom bap drums courtesy of Party Supplies.
"Nosetalgia" by Pusha T and Kendrick Lamar
Push and Kendrick reminisce on their history in the drug game on one of the hardest tracks of the year. Pusha kicks things off with some clever baby/cocaine double entendre ("Twenty plus years of selling Johnson & Johnson/I started out as a baby-faced monster/No wonder there's diaper rash on my conscious/My teeethin ring was numb from the nonsense") and K Dot follows suit with tales on his dope fiend father and "legendary" granddaddy.
"FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt" by Jay-Z and Rick Ross
From the duo that brought you the classic "Maybach Music" comes one of the years most iconic bangers. Boi 1da's booming bass line could be heard emanating from many a car stereo this summer, and Jay-Z ("In a villa in Venice sippin vino") and Rozay ("I don't bop, I do the money dance/My bitch whip cost a hundred grand") bless it with some of their signature kingpin braggadocio.
"The Rockers" by Action Bronson and Wiz Khalifa
Action and Khalifa are something of rap polar opposites. One a fat scumbag who rocks ball shorts in the winter, the other a skinny pothead who wears Chinchilla coats on the beach. The two emcees put their differences aside to do this Marty Jannetty tribute over a mesmerizing guitar loop by Harry Fraud. This was the standout track of Bronson and Harry Fraud's first installment of SAAAB Stories.
And the winner is..."FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt" by Jay-Z and Rick Ross
Jay and Ross' anthem just edges out "The Rockers" here. This timely collaboration was arguably the saving grace of Jay-Z's mostly overdone album.
Mixtape/EP of the Year
The Nominees:
Truly Yours 2 by J. Cole
Perhaps the most disappointing thing about J. Cole’s second studio album, Born Sinner (which was fine), is that it had to follow up this expertly crafted 6-song EP that features Cole on top of his game both as a rapper and a producer. While the album is full of generic crossover hits (“Crooked Smile” and “Power Trip”) and jacked hip-hop classics (“LAnd of the Snakes” and “Forbidden Fruit”), Truly Yours 2 is J. Cole at his most lyrically introspective and musically creative. The standout track “3 Wishes”, on which Cole shares his hopes an end to his mothers’ abusive relationship, that he could have stood up to her abusive boyfriend, and for his childhood friend to be freed from prison over a simple-yet-funky baseline, is the exact kind of song the J. Cole was born to make.
Wrath of Cain by Pusha T
This mixtape, which served as a sort of prelude to Pusha’s solo debut, My Name Is My Name, features plenty of album-worthy material itself. This is due much in part to a producer lineup that is normally reserved for a major-label release: Kanye West (“Millions”), Young Chop (“Blocka”), Bink (“I Am Forgiven”), Jake One (“Take My Life”), and long-time collaborators The Neptunes (“Revolutions”). Maybe it goes without saying, but these are the five strongest tracks on the tape.
This mixtape, which served as a sort of prelude to Pusha’s solo debut, My Name Is My Name, features plenty of album-worthy material itself. This is due much in part to a producer lineup that is normally reserved for a major-label release: Kanye West (“Millions”), Young Chop (“Blocka”), Bink (“I Am Forgiven”), Jake One (“Take My Life”), and long-time collaborators The Neptunes (“Revolutions”). Maybe it goes without saying, but these are the five strongest tracks on the tape.
The Pimpire Strikes Back by Roc Marciano
Nearly a decade since the release of The U.N.’s hidden gem, U.N. Or U Out, group leader Roc Marciano has re-emerged as an unlikely hero of New York’s underground rap scene. The Pimpire Strikes Back features Marciano’s signature drawl over some of his finest production work to date, plus tracks by legendary beat makers Lord Finesse and Madlib. Also chipping in are Action Bronson (“Sincerely Antique” and “Velvet Cape”) and fellow champion of classic East Coast rap, QB’s own Cormega.
Nearly a decade since the release of The U.N.’s hidden gem, U.N. Or U Out, group leader Roc Marciano has re-emerged as an unlikely hero of New York’s underground rap scene. The Pimpire Strikes Back features Marciano’s signature drawl over some of his finest production work to date, plus tracks by legendary beat makers Lord Finesse and Madlib. Also chipping in are Action Bronson (“Sincerely Antique” and “Velvet Cape”) and fellow champion of classic East Coast rap, QB’s own Cormega.
Blue Chips 2 by Action Bronson
The 2011 mixtape Blue Chips paired the unlikely duo of the brutish and vulgar Queens rapper, Action Bronson, and a little-known hipster-producer duo called “Party Supplies”. The mixtape, a critical success albeit rough around the edges, showcased the budding chemistry between Bronson and Supplies, whose sample-based, straight looping production style fit Bronsolino like a Todd Hundey baseball mitt. If the first Blue Chips (named after a mid-90’s Nick Nolte movie starring Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway, because of course it is) was a Shaq and Penny give-and-go, then Blue Chips 2 is LeBron and D-Wade throwing each other full court alley-oops off the backboard. Party Supplies’ use of familiar loops (Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason”, Elton John, Isaac Hayes…fucking “Tequila”) sets the stage for some of Action’s most hilarious punch lines and 90’s references to date (“He took a sniff and started dancing like Elaine Benes”). The second half of the tape, particularly the excellent “9.24.13” and “Rolling Thunder”, establishes Party Supplies as a legitimate go-to beat maker and Action Bronson as a full blown rap superstar.
The 2011 mixtape Blue Chips paired the unlikely duo of the brutish and vulgar Queens rapper, Action Bronson, and a little-known hipster-producer duo called “Party Supplies”. The mixtape, a critical success albeit rough around the edges, showcased the budding chemistry between Bronson and Supplies, whose sample-based, straight looping production style fit Bronsolino like a Todd Hundey baseball mitt. If the first Blue Chips (named after a mid-90’s Nick Nolte movie starring Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway, because of course it is) was a Shaq and Penny give-and-go, then Blue Chips 2 is LeBron and D-Wade throwing each other full court alley-oops off the backboard. Party Supplies’ use of familiar loops (Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason”, Elton John, Isaac Hayes…fucking “Tequila”) sets the stage for some of Action’s most hilarious punch lines and 90’s references to date (“He took a sniff and started dancing like Elaine Benes”). The second half of the tape, particularly the excellent “9.24.13” and “Rolling Thunder”, establishes Party Supplies as a legitimate go-to beat maker and Action Bronson as a full blown rap superstar.
And the winner is...Blue Chips 2 by Action Bronson
In an era where the difference between what's an album, or a mixtape, or an EP, or what the fuck ever, is increasingly hazy, Blue Chips 2 takes best mixtape, but should be looked at as 2013's best hip-hop project.
In an era where the difference between what's an album, or a mixtape, or an EP, or what the fuck ever, is increasingly hazy, Blue Chips 2 takes best mixtape, but should be looked at as 2013's best hip-hop project.
Verse of the Year
The Nominees:
Jay-Z on "FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt"
Best Line: "Hov keep gettin that dinero, got it?/Even if a n**** gotta rob it, get it?/Black Jack in a casino/A n**** got unlimited credit."
Drake on "5 AM in Toronto"
Best Line: "Give these n****s the look, the verse, and even a hook/That's why every song sounds like Drake featuring Drake."
J. Cole on "Villuminati"
Best Line: "My pops was club hoppin back when Rick James was out/And all I get is Trinidad James/Wait a minute that's strange/Sip a little champagne say 'fuck it'/If the hoes like it, I love it n***a, n***a, n***a."
Action Bronson on "Through the Eyes of a G"
Best Line: "Hop in the Vanquish and vanish off the manor in a strange manor/Aim a hammer at your dame's bladder"
And the winner is...Action Bronson on "Through the Eyes of a G"
Bronsolino rocks the old "Passin' Me By" sample with some of his most creative lyricism to date. This verse is chock full of classic Action Bronson quotables like "I'm signing authographs in Spanish" and "I smoke till I've got Down's Syndrome."
Producer of the Year
The Nominees:
Mike WiLL
Mike WiLL followed up a strong 2012 with an even better '13, emerging as one of the biggest producers in popular music in the process. Most notable was his work with 2 Chainz ("Fork", Where You Been", "Good Kush and Alcohol"), Jay-Z's short-but-sweet "Beach Is Better", and the Miley Cyrus/Wiz Khalifa/Juicy J club banger "23".
Party Supplies
From what I can tell, Party Supplies are relatively new to the hip-hop production game, only working closely with Action Bronson. While their body of work doesn't necessarily stack up with rap's veteran producers, their superb work on the year's best mixtape warrants a nomination.
DJ Mustard
At this point, you pretty much know what you're going to get with DJ Mustard. When the anthemic "Rack City" hit a few years back, my initial thought was "How has nobody made this beat already?" Mustard has since made a career of crafting slightly different incarnations of that same beat, but, I mean, they're bangers. "R.I.P." at least delayed Young Jeezy's fade into obscurity, while Ty Dolla $ign's "Paranoid" and Kid Ink's "Show Me" helped put two up-and-comers on the map. Hey! Hey! Hey!
Hit-Boy
Hit-Boy took a year off of being everybody's go-to producer to build his own brand, dropping the very good HS87 mixtape with his artists, Audio Push. He also flexed his skills with horn samples on Jay-Z's brilliantly produced "SomewhereInAmerica" and Drake's triumphant "Trophies".
And the winner is...Mike WiLL
Hit-Boy is the best producer in rap but Mike WiLL is the hottest beat maker right now. It will be interesting to see how his career trajectory plays out; will he expand his sound to become more universal or will he keep doing 2 Chainz bangers forever?
Beat of the Year
The Nominees:
"Collard Greens" produced by THC and Gwen Bunn
THC and Gwen Bunn? Me neither, but they teamed up to make one of the unique sounding rap songs of the year. The loud, crisp percussion gives way to a trippy backdrop that is perfect for the Black Hippy duo of Schoolboy Q and Kendrick Lamar.
"Picasso Baby" produced by Timbaland
Front like you didn't put on a mean "who farted" face the first time you heard this shit. Timbo's jamming guitar loop is pleasantly reminiscent of the classic Jay-Z/Primo cuts "So Ghetto" and "Friend or Foe 98".
"Started from the Bottom" produced by Mike Zombie
The first time I played this, long before the "Twitterverse" got their hands on it and made it into an insufferable meme or a hashtag or whatever, "Started from the Bottom" was almost an intoxicating hip-hop listening experience. Drake's hook may be immortalized by the Internets, but it was Mike Zombie's spare, eery production that made this a great song.
"Numbers on the Boards" produced by Kanye West
Kanye was rather quiet on the beat making front this year, with the exception being this glitchy, avant-garde sounding Pusha T single. The Jay-Z vocal sample was also a ballsy master stroke.
And the winner is..."Numbers on the Boards" produced by Kanye West
This was a really tough call. "Started from the Bottom" has the instant recognition factor going for it, and "Picasso Baby" might go harder, but this was the overall best.
Album of the Year
The Nominees:
Magna Carta Holy Grail by Jay-Z
The now-infamous commercial that features Timbaland and Pharrell crafting beats for a new Jay-Z album while Rick Rubin sleeps on his couch sent the hip-hop world into a frenzy, but also might have placed unrealistic expectations on a Jay-Z album in 2013. Critics panned the album for being unimaginative and out-of-touch, which is fair, but what was to be expected of a rapper pushing 50 who spends more time perusing art galleries than he does “in the streets”? While Jay-Z was not always on top of his game lyrically on Magna Carta, this was the best-produced album of the year by a long shot. Jay recruited "in" producers like Hit-Boy ("SomewhereInAmerica") and Mike WiLL ("Beach Is Better") to help stay current musically, while Pharrell ("BBC", "Oceans") and a rejuvenated Timbaland ("Tom Ford", "Picasso Baby", "Versus") contribute some their best material in ages.
With 808's and Heartbreak on the shelves and his street cred at an all-time low, Kanye West decided that his G.O.O.D. Music crew made up of mostly beta-males (Consequence, Big Sean, Kid Cudi, John Legend, etc.) could use a little muscle. Enter: The Clipse's Pusha T, whose lyrical skill and drug kingpin bravado added a new and necessary edge to the G.O.O.D. music catalogue. The potential combination of Pusha T's talent and distinct style and Kanye's limitless musical resources made his solo debut one of 2013's most anticipated projects. However, aside from the Kanye-produced "Numbers on the Boards", My Name Is My Name was hardly distinguishable from The Wrath of Cain tape, or Fear of God tape, or much of the Clipse's material, for that matter.
Nothing Was The Same by Drake
When Drake dropped the anthemic "Started from the Bottom" followed by the spacey, on-fire "5 AM in Toronto", I had high hopes for a rapping-heavy Drake album. As much as I would like to hear such an album, this will never happen. Drake is a terrific rapper when he wants to be, but his crossover appeal is what landed him the lucrative record deal, the bitches in Miami, and is what separates his career from that of, say, J. Cole. Like his first two albums, Nothing Was The Same was a great rap album when it was a rap album, which is to say like 30% of the time. There was also this vague Wu-Tang motif going on here that didn't quite land.
Yeezus by Kanye West
Kanye just doesn't give a fuck anymore. Gone are the tiny sweaters, humorous punchlines, and soul samples, since replaced by sleeveless leather trench coats, vulgar yelling, and a bunch of weird noises. Yeezus may not be the same Kanye that burst onto the scene a decade ago, but at least he is still pushing the envelope creatively.
And the winner is...Magna Carta Holy Grail by Jay-Z
This album has its share of flaws; Jay-Z on his 'B' game lyrically, the terribly overwrought duets with JT and Beyonce, being "over-produced", and so forth. But given the weak crop of studio albums this year, it was either this or a third of that Drake album, which was a pretty easy decision.
Song of the Year
The Nominees:
"Trillmatic" by A$AP Mobb and Method Man
I don't know where this song came from but it is fucking fire. Ty Beats tries his hand at an East Coast boom bap beat with glorious success and the addition of Method Man is just perfect. A$AP Nast, who carries the rest of the rhymes on this track, doesn't take a back seat to the Wu-Tang legend, perhaps giving us an artist to watch in the future.
"FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt" by Jay-Z and Rick Ross
Two Dons of the rap game go hard on one of 2013's biggest bangers.
"9.24.13" by Action Bronson
On this the best song off of Blue Chips 2, Action Bronson reminisces on old flames as only he can ("I caught her cheatin'/Her pussy didn't feel the same") over an incredible female chorus sample flip by Party Supplies.
"Started From The Bottom" by Drake
Whether or not Aubrey Graham did, in fact, "start from the bottom" is up for debate, but this was without question one of the boldest, most creative hip-hop songs of the year.
And the winner is..."9.24.13" by Action Bronson
I waffled on this one too, but ultimately settled on this mostly because it was the best song off of the best tape.
Artist of the Year
The Nominees:
Drake
Drake released the critically acclaimed album Nothing Was The Same while keeping rap fans appeased with verses on Migos' "Versace" and Future's "Shit".
Action Bronson
In addition to Blue Chips 2, Action was among hip-hop's most prolific guest rappers. According to my iTunes, Bronson appeared on tracks with Chip The Rapper, Prodigy, Alex Wiley, Fat Joe, Roc Marciano, and Task Rok, and came correct on all of them.
Roc Marciano
Marci followed up the mixtape The Pimpire Strikes Back with the self-produced album titled Marci Beaucoup. Both are worth a listen.
J. Cole
Like Marciano, J. Cole had both a great mixtape (Truly Yours 2) and a proper album (Born Sinner) in 2013. Maybe when he stops being so butthurt about not having a crossover pop hit, he'll actually win a coveted PropsOverHere award.
And the winner is...Drake
Drake, a serious nominee heading into the holiday season, pulled ahead for good by dropping "We Made It" and the Hit-Boy produced "Trophies" right before New Years.
Congrats to all of this year's nominees and award winners. See you all again in 2014.
